Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry said Saturday that he expects to be back on the floor Sunday night against the Houston Rockets, ending a two-month absence caused by patellofemoral pain syndrome in his right knee.
Speaking with reporters at Chase Center, the two-time MVP called the lingering discomfort a “new normal” but stressed that doctors have found no structural damage.
“There’s nothing wrong with the knee itself, so I’m not limited out there,” Curry said. “It just behaves differently now.”
Curry is officially listed as questionable for Sunday’s home game, yet team officials indicated he will play unless a setback occurs in the hours leading up to tip-off.
Recovery took longer than expected
The 36-year-old felt pain and swelling during a Jan. 24 workout and tried to keep playing before shutting it down on Jan. 30. Initially he believed a week—10 days at most—would solve the problem.
“Every time I pushed it early on, the knee reacted,” he explained. “You’d finish a workout, feel the pain come back, and the next day was rough. That cycle repeated for two months.”
Targets for a post–All-Star break return and a March road trip were both scrapped. A setback in Atlanta two weeks ago delayed progress again, but clearance for five-on-five scrimmages this past week finally moved the process forward.
Play-in on the horizon
If Sunday’s return goes smoothly, Curry will have roughly one week to ramp up for the play-in tournament. Golden State is virtually locked into the No. 10 seed in the Western Conference.
Curry said he never seriously weighed sitting out the remainder of the season, a stance echoed by head coach Steve Kerr.
“He’s the greatest face of a franchise I’ve ever seen,” Kerr told reporters. “Our fans deserve to watch Stephen Curry play basketball this year, and that’s exactly what he wants too.”
Source: Hoops Rumors
